Scleroderma

A viral infection may help combat lupus. The mouse version of a virus thought to be a prime suspect in the disease, the Epstein-Barr virus, actually prevents certain features of the autoimmune disease, a study in mice shows.

“It might be that this virus has positive effects,” says study author Roberta Pelanda of the National Jewish Health hospital and the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine. “We really don’t know what these chronic viruses do to the immune system.” Pelanda and her colleagues describe the findings online April 2 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Stress wreaks havoc on the mind and body. For example, psychological stress is associated with greater risk for depression, heart disease and infectious diseases. But, until now, it has not been clear exactly how stress influences disease and health. 

A research team led by Carnegie Mellon University's Sheldon Cohen has found that chronic psychological stress is associated with the body losing its ability to regulate the inflammatory response. Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the research shows

Pain—it’s something we’ve all experienced. From our first skinned knee to the headaches, back pain and creaky joints as we age, pain is something we encounter many times. Most pain is acute and goes away quickly. But in some cases, when pain develops slowly or persists for months or even years, then it’s called chronic pain, and it can be tricky to treat. Chronic pain is a huge problem.

NIH-funded scientists are working to better understand and treat chronic pain. They’re uncovering the intricate pathways that lead to long-term pain.

The characterization of a rare immune cell’s involvement in antibody production and ability to ‘remember’ infectious agents could help to improve vaccination and lead to new treatments for immune disorders, say researchers from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.

The cells, called T follicular helper cells, represent less than half of one per cent of all immune cells, but play a critical role in antibody production and developing

T. W. van Hal, L. van Bon, and T. R. D. J. Radstake
Received 20 May 2011; Revised 18 August 2011; Accepted 7 September 2011

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is typified by vascular alterations and immunological disturbances and fibrosis of the skin and internal organs, which culminates in severe disabilities and not seldom premature death. Although the abovementioned pathways are all clearly involved, their sequel and relative contributions are still a matter of debate.

About 90% of the patients diagnosed with SSc experienced Raynaud’s phenomenon long before the appearance of other clinical symptoms that drives the patient to visit a physician. The diagnosis is often made when patients suffer from a full-blown SSc with rarefaction of the small capillaries as identified by capillaroscopy, digital ulcers, and progressive fibrosis of the skin. Both Raynaud’s phenomenon and the rarefaction of capillaries suggest the presence of hypoxia during certain stages of disease.

Theresa C. Barnes,Marina E. Anderson, and Robert J.Moots
Received 1 June 2011; Accepted 21 July 2011

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a connective tissue disease characterised by fibrosis, vasculopathy, and immunological abnormalities. Over recent years, it has become clear that inflammation plays a crucial role in mediating the pathophysiological process underlying SSc, especially early in the disease. Endothelial cell activation and dysfunction are central to the disease pathogenesis, may be driven by a proinflammatory environment, and may result in the generation of a profibrotic phenotype.

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a pleiotropic cytokine. In addition to its role in the acute phase response, IL-6 has diverse roles in driving chronic inflammation, autoimmunity, endothelial cell dysfunction, and fibrogenesis. Therefore, it is currently attracting a great deal of interest in the rheumatology community as a potential therapeutic agent in SSc, a disease which at present lacks treatments directed at the underlying pathogenesis.

Marta Baleva and Krasimir Nikolov
Received 12 June 2011; Revised 28 August 2011; Accepted 28 August 2011

Scleroderma is progressive autoimmune disease associated with severe disability. The major underlying pathological process in scleroderma is progressive development of fibrous tissue and obliteration of the microvasculature. Currently, there are no medical products for the treatment of scleroderma that provide both sufficient immunosuppression and low-risk side safety profile with negligible side effects. There are a large number of experimental data showing that intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) has multiple clinical and morphological effects. On the other hand, some authors report good effect of intravenous immune globulins in patients with scleroderma. The less frequent side effects of IVIG in doses below or equal to 2 g/kg/month divided in 5 consecutive days make IVIG a promising treatment of choice in scleroderma.

There are over 7,000 known rare disorders or diseases, a statistic which is continually growing as medical science advances. The European Union's definition of a rare disorder or disease is a condition which affects 5 or less people in every 10,000.

Scleroderma is a rare, autoimmune, connective tissue disease characterized by the overproduction of collagen, which results in the thickening and hardening of the underlying connective tissues which support the skin, blood vessels, muscles, and internal organs such as the heart, lungs, and kidneys.

For our second year running, the Scleroderma Care Foundation will be hosting its “Unite Against Scleroderma” Awareness Walk around the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port of Spain. Scheduled to start from 3:00pm, the Walk would be held on Sunday May 6th 2012 and cover one full lap.

The Walk ultimately aims to raise the profile of Scleroderma in the public consciousness - aligned with our ongoing mission to assist Scleroderma patients, their families, and respective communities through mutual social and financial support, educational initiatives, the stimulation of research, and bringing forth a greater awareness of Scleroderma.

A genetic pathway previously known for its role in embryonic development and cancer has been identified as a target for systemic sclerosis, or scleroderma, therapy. The finding, discovered by a cross-disciplinary team led by John Varga, MD, John and Nancy Hughes Distinguished Professor of Rheumatology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, was recently published in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatism.

"We showed, for the first time, that the Wnt signaling pathway is abnormally activated in scleroderma patients," said Varga, who is also a physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. "This is significant for three reasons. First, it gives a better picture of scleroderma and fibrosis in general. Second, it provides a strategy for assessing disease severity, progression, and activity. And third, it opens a door for the design of treatments that aim to block the Wnt pathway and restore its normal controlled activity."

The month of March is designated by the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) as National Autoimmune Diseases Awareness Month. The goal of the month is to educate the public on the risk factors, prevalence and severe lack of awareness surrounding autoimmune diseases. The theme for 2012 is “We Are 50 Million,” reminding Americans that there are 50 million people across the nation who suffer, comprising a major US health crisis.

An autoimmune disorder is a condition that occurs when the immune system

More than 32 million Americans harbor potentially toxic proteins that can attack body tissues and lead to autoimmune diseases such as Lupus and Scleroderma, according to a new University of Florida study. This is the first accurate estimate of the frequency of the proteins, called autoantibodies, the researchers say. The findings appear online and in an upcoming print edition of the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism.